Windmill-regulator.



Ive-759,491. PATENTED MAY 10, 1904.

G. M. AGEE.

WINDMILL REGULATOR.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 22. 1903.

NO MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 759,491. PATENTED MAY 10, 1904,

G. M. AGEE.

WINDMILL REGULATOR.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 22. 1903.

no MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STAT S Patented May 10, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE M. AGEE, OF BLOCKTON, IOl VA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO DANFORD & TERRILL, OF BLOCKTON, IOWA, A FIRM.

WINDIVIILL-REGULATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 759,491, dated May 10, 1904.

Application filed December 22, 1903. $eria1No. 186,24. (No model.)

To air/M w/tom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE M. AGEE, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Blockton, Taylor county, Iowa, have invented a new anduseful Windmill- Regulator, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is provide improved means for throwing a windmill or wind-wheel out of gear or out of the wind.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means for swinging the vane of a windmill out of the wind through the operation of the windmill-gearing under the control of a float or manual force.

My invention consists in the provision of a segmental rack connected with the vane of a windmill and a gear adapted to act on said rack at intervals and swing the vane out of the wind, said gear driven by the gearing of the windmill.

My invention consists, further, in the construction, arrangement, and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a perspective illustrating the application of my improved device to one form of windmill or wind-engine. Fig. 2 is a detail elevation of a portion of my devices detached from the remainder. Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partly in section, illustrating the application of my improved devices to a windmill and the employment of float devices for the control thereof.

In the construction of the device as shown the numeral designates the head of one form of wind-engine, which is provided with a wheel-shaft 11, on which a windmill (not shown) may be mounted and which is geared by gears 11 11 to a counter-shaft"mounted for rotation in the arm 12, the gear 11 on said counter-shaft being attached to a pitman 13, which is in turn connected to a pump rod or piston 14. The machine also is provided with a vane rod or stem 15 of any form to which a vane may be attached for holding the wind-wheel in the proper position relative to the air-currents employed to turn the, wheel. A standard or upright shaft 16 is journaled for rotation in bearings 17 18, fixed to or formed on the machine-head 10. A T 19 is fixed to the lower end portion of the shaft 16, and the vane-stem 15 is fixed in and projects horizontally from the lateral of said T. The vane-stem 15 also may be connected by a brace or suspension rod 20 to the upper portion of the shaft 16 above the bearing 17. A

cross 21 is mounted on or fixed to the vertical shaft 16, and a cross-rod 22 is mounted horizontally in said cross and projects at either end therefrom. A segment or bail 23, preferably made of bar-steel, is pivoted at its ends on the end portions of the cross-rod 22 and forms a semicircle around and incl osing the machine head 10. One end portion of the cross-rod 22 may be connected by a brace 24 to the vanestem 15 to strengthen, steady, and support said stem and also to provide a lateral draft connection between the stem and cross-rod. A disk 25 is mounted rigidly on the outer end portion of the counter-shaft in the arm 12 of the head, and a loop or staple 26 is formed on and projects horizontally from the central portion of said disk. The staple 26 and disk 25 are rigidly connected to and arranged to rotate with the counter-shaft, and the axis of rotation of the staple and disk is coincident with that of the shaft. The bail or segment 23 is formed with teeth 27 on its lower margin, and said teeth are arranged to be engaged by the bail 26 and are equally spaced apart. At one end portion of the bail a notch 28 is formed adjacent one of the end teeth 27, which notch is of materially greater length than the notches between the teeth. A rod 29 is pivoted at one end to the central portion of the bail or segment 23, and the upper end portion thereof is provided with a stem 30, extending through an aperture in the laterally-bent upper end portion of the vertical shaft 16. An expansive coil-spring 31 is mounted on the stem and impinges, respectively, on the rod 29 and the laterallybent upper end portion of the vertical shaft 16. A sheave 32 is mounted loosely in the laterally-bent upper end portion of the vertical shaft 16, and a draft wire, chain, or cord 33 is connected at one end to the rod 29, extends over the sheave 32 and depends therefrom to the ground. The lower end portion of the draft wire, chain, or cord 33 is attached to a lever 34, fulcrumed on a suitable sup port 3 1 and provided with an adjustable weight or poise 35. The adjustable weight or poise 35 is so positioned on the lever 34 as to counterbalance the weight of the bail or segment 23 and permit the engagement of the teeth of said bail with the staple or loop 26, the expansive coil-spring 31 normally being expanded and applying a strain to the wire, chain, or cord 33. A draft wire, chain, or cord 36 is attached to the lever 34 and leads to a float 37 in a tank 38. When the parts are in the positions shown, further rotation of the counter-shaft, under the influence of the wheel-shaft 11, will rotate the disk 25 in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1 and cause the staple 26 to rotate and successively engage the teeth 27 of the bail and move said bail rotatably until the staple reaches the notch 28, atwhich time strain has been applied through the T 19 and brace 2 1 sufficient to pull the vane-stem 15 laterally and draw the vane into a position at right angles to the wheel-shaft.

During the lateral movement of the vane and its stem the machine-head turns and moves the wind-wheel out of the wind and into such position that it cannot be rotated by normal air-currents. The staple is positioned in the notch 28 and has a freedom of movement or play therein suflicient to avoid breaking of any of the mechanism under excessive air-currents which may arise. The machine will be held in this inoperative position so long as the weight of thefloat 37 is not applied to the lever 3&; but when the level of water in the tank 38 falls to such extent that the weight of the float 37 is applied to the lever 34 thereupon a strainis brought to bear through the wire 36, lever 34, and wire 33 which will raise the bail or segment 23 out of engagement with the staple 26 and against the resilience of the spring 31, whereupon the vane may swing into the Wind and in so doing permit the wind-wheel to come into the wind and be rotated by normal air-currents. When the wind-w heel has again started, it acts, through the pitman 13 and piston 14, to the pumping of water into the tank 38, and when the level of the water in said tank rises to such extent as to slacken the strain on the draft wire, chain, or cord 33 the expansive coilspring 31 acts to take up the slack in the wire and permit the bail or segment 23 again to fall into engagement with the staple 26, wheremit the mill to swing into gear again, the bail being held suspended by attaching the draftwire to some stationary part of the tower or pump.

I claim as my invention 1. In a windmill-regulator, the combination of a counter-shaft, a segment, a vane attached to said segment, and gear connections between said counter-shaft and segment.

2. In a windmillregulator, the combination of a counter-shaft, a hinged bail or segment, gear connections between said segment and counter-shaft, and a vane attached to said segment.

3. In a windmill-regulator, the combination of a counter-shaft, a hinged bail or segment arranged to be moved laterally by said countershaft, a vane attachedto said bail, and means for lifting said bail out of engagement with the counter-shaft.

1. Ina windmill-regulator, the combination of a counter-shaft, a staple or loop thereon, a

hinged bail formed with teeth arranged to be engaged by said staple or loop at times, and a vane attached to said bail.

5. In a windmill-regulator, a rotating shaft, a vertical shaft, a vane attached to said vertical shaft, a cross-rod attached to said vertical shaft, a bail or segment hinged to said crossrod and arranged for gear connection with said driven shaft at times, and connections between said cross-rod and vane.

6. In a windmill-regulator, the combination of the vane, the segment attached thereto, means for lifting said segment, and connections between said segment and the driven mechanism of a windmill.

7. In a windmill-regulator, the combination of the driving mechanism of a windmill, a hinged bail arranged to be engaged thereby at times, and a vane attached to said bail.

8. In a windmill-regulator, the combination of the driving mechanism of a windmill, a hinged bail, avane attached to said bail, a rod, a wire whereby said bail may be lifted, and an expansive spring tending to depress said rod and hail.

Signed by me at Blockton, Iowa, this 31st day of October, 1903.

GEORGE M AGEE. l/Vitnessesz SAMUEL L. WARDEN, JAMES C. DRIVER. 

